THE BEGINNING
by Noteworthy87
Summary: The first chapter of an ongoing story about a new doctor in the ER named Bella Fairfax and the different things she goes through.
1. Default Chapter

Hey everyone! This is my first time actually putting my thoughts to paper so please don't be too harsh. Thanks for any commentary that is given. Peace!  
  
*****  
  
As Bella Fairfax stared at herself in the mirror she was reminded of her mother. Although she looked nothing like the overweight woman who had always stifled her ambitions when she was a child, Bella was quite used to thinking that her body was not quite what it should be. Bella was one of those people who would never think much of herself, no matter how many people gave her compliments.  
  
Truthfully, Bella was quite the contrary to the selfish, snobby, overweight person that she thought she was. Bella was a very beautiful woman of 29 with natural blond hair, blue eyes, the perfect shape, high intelligence, and a great personality. She had spent the last 3 years getting her degree in medicine at Dartmouth. It had taken her two years to get her degree in medicine and a whole year in residency at a hospital in Boston. Now she was a real doctor, as she had always wanted to be. It hadn't taken Bella very long to get her degree in medicine because her first time through medical school she had become a nurse because of her father and mother's opinion that it was a "more feminine" position. So she had taken most of the classes that she needed for being a doctor in her trivial struggle to become a nurse. This is why it didn't take quite so long to get through school the second time around.  
  
Bella was getting ready for her first day at the hospital where she had been hired a week after her residency was over. It was called County Hospital and it was in the middle of Chicago. Sure, Dr. Fairfax had been offered better jobs at private practices where she would work shorter hours for more money but she had declined. County Hospital had seemed like a place where her medical skills would be put to practice and it definitely seemed like a challenge. Besides, Bella had already done the private practice bit as a nurse; the money and stifling atmosphere did not interest her.  
  
Money was never a very big issue for Bella for the soul reason that her family was one of the richest in Illinois. Her father had been nominated for the position of the richest man alive the past year and she always knew that if she needed a net to catch her when she fell he would be there. She was doing all right by herself though and for the first time in her life she felt free of all restraints and control her father had always exercised over her. Bella felt a confidence in her future, which seemed very promising.  
  
Bella grabbed her keys and her purse and took one last look at herself in the mirror. As she opened her apartment door to leave she glanced around and thought, "this is the last time I'm going to see this place for about 16 hours." She smiled to herself and shut the door. She took a momentary gaze at her wristwatch and realizing how late it was ran to catch the train the people in this city called "The El." 


	2. Life Anew

*****  
  
Bella stepped off the train and pulled her coat tight around her. "It's freezing!" she thought to herself. She smiled as she remembered something her brother used to say when they were children and it would get cold. Bella would say, "it's so dang cold!" and James would reply, "Hell yeah, cold as a witch's titty in a brass bra!" She pulled out the map that she had downloaded and printed off the Internet and soon she found her way to the wall that was constructed around County Hospital. It seemed as though the hospital was trying to hide from the outside world and that one would be safe inside these walls. Bella made her way through the ambulance bay and took a deep breath as the doors slid open and she entered the hospital.  
  
"AHHHHHHHH, DON'T, DON'T, NO NEEDLES!" Bella jumped back a little as a man with a large gash in his forehead sprinted for the sliding doors almost knocking her over in the process. "Stop him!" yelled a tall Caucasian woman with tousled brown curls that she had twisted into a bun on top of her head. The woman had sort of a strange accent and for a second Bella wondered where the woman was from. Another loud shout, "Stop him!" broke into Bella's thoughts and without really thinking about it Bella stuck her foot out into the man's path. The man tripped and fell against a couple of chairs in the lobby. A nurse came and sat on the man as the brunette woman gave him a shot, which Bella assumed was a sedative.  
  
The man slowly settled down and two nurses were able to help him up and take him to a small bed behind a curtain. The brunette approached Bella with a certain uneasiness, "and what would be wrong with you today??" she asked after she had caught her breath. "My name is Doctor Bella Fairfax. I'm the new doctor, this is my first day?" There was an awkward pause as the woman examined Bella. Bella paused for a minute too, thinking maybe she had been more of a nuisance then help, "perhaps you can tell me where I can get some information about where to start?"  
  
Bella was beginning to feel a little self-conscious with this doctor giving her the up and down look. "Well, I'm Doctor Elizabeth Corday and I believe I am in your debt, so I will show you your schedule and get a tour of the hospital set up for you." Just as Doctor Corday was finishing her last sentence a medic came rushing in, "there was a fire across town and Mercy is already swamped, we have 3 more ambulances behind us!" "Well, Dr. Fairfax is it? That tour will have to wait, you're about to know what it truly feels like to be an ER doctor. You can put your things down behind the desk there." Bella hesitated a little, she had known that she would have to start working quickly but, really, she had just come in the door. "Well come along then!" Corday responded as she raced out the sliding doors.  
  
Bella left her things where she was told and she raced after Corday. She soon found herself in a maze of ambulances and sick bodies. A fresh ambulance pulled up and she hurried to it as they were pulling out the first person as she had seen Dr. Corday do. As the medic explained the patient's injuries she listened intently and began to think of a treatment she would use. Bella glanced over toward another patient who was wailing that his leg hurt and she caught the eye of another doctor. A tall, foreign man with black hair and dark brown eyes that one could get lost in. (He was very handsome.) She was soon forced to break their stare when a new ambulance of victims was brought in and he hurried to help.  
  
Bella had her own patients to take care of and soon the man and time were lost to her as she rushed about trying to find her way around and trying to help her patients at the same time. 


	3. No one takes advantage of me!

I do not own any of these characters! This is kind of graduated to a PG rating because there is a small amount of cussing. Enjoy! ****  
  
"Am I going to die?" A man asked as he looked up at Bella with glazed eyes. "No sir, you have indigestion," Bella explained, "probably because of those chilidogs you were eating when the fire broke out, it should pass. You can put your clothes back on and go home, the medicine I gave you should kick in soon." Bella gave the man a grin as she passed through the cheap white curtains with small blue circles on them. These curtains divided the small examining area from the rest of the hospital. Bella passed by the main desk and placed the chart for the patient in front of Maleik. "Hey Maleik, can you input this into the computer for me please, I have 5 other patients and they've all been waiting for a while." Bella had met Maleik, a male nurse, towards the middle of her shift and camaraderie between them was already evident. "Sure, that's what I'm here for," Maleik replied with a sarcastic smile. Even though he had just met Bella, she seemed to respect and appreciate everything he did there. "Thanks," Bella said with a short smile before she grabbed a chart and shot off in the other direction.  
  
Bella breezed through another set of curtains, "Hello Mr.. Dela, I'm Doctor Bella Fairfax, can you tell me what hurts and where it hurts?" Bella looked up from the chart to see a doctor that looked somewhat familiar to her sleepy eyes examining the patient. "Bella Fairfax, as I live and breath," he chuckled a little bit and then smiled. It took Bella about four seconds to realize who it was, "John Carter! What are you doing here Johnny?" Bella asked as she suddenly became animated. John and Bella had been friends since they were 5 years old. They were members of the richest families in the Chicago area and they would play together when their families would have social events. "Well, I work here. I guess you're the new doctor I've heard so much about. The, what have you been called, hmmm the hot-doc." Carter and Bella chuckled. "I don't know what would motivate people to call me that, but it really is good to see you John, it's been a while." "A whole year it's been! You feel almost like a stranger." They paused just reveling in the sheer surprise of being reunited and being colleagues. "What no hug Bella? Now that you're a big doctor I guess you're to good for that." Bella smiled, "you know it!" She gave him a hug and nudge with her elbow.  
"Mr. Dela is usually my patient so I can take him if you want to go on to your next one." "Thanks John, are you sure?" "Yeah, of course, have you been in the trauma rooms yet?" Carter asked in a nonchalant way as he listened to Mr. Dela's heart with his stethoscope. "Well yeah, but they don't trust me to actually do the procedures yet. Even though I'm fully able, I have done my residency and I was a nurse." Bella rolled her eyes and gave the chart to Carter. "I'm sure they'll let you do the procedures in the ER tomorrow. Unless, you screw up in some huge way and kill someone." Bella laughed and smacked Carter's arm playfully.  
She went back out to the information desk and took a look at the assignment board. She erased the two patients she had already seen off the board and looked down toward her next patient. Wait. There was a discrepancy on the board; she had been given 5 extra patients. Kerry came up behind her and stared at the board. Bella had met Kerry, the resident advisor, at the beginning of her shift. Bella wasn't sure about Kerry, there was something different about her. Not that she used a cane to walk but just something about the way she acted gave Bella the impression that her preference was not that of a usual woman. "Excuse me Kerry, a couple of patients were added to my work load and I was told that I wouldn't have any more patients added." Kerry paused, "You're an ER doctor you will have patients added all the time, it depends on how slow or fast the night is." "But, five new patients?" "Five?" Kerry took another look at the chart, "looks like you've been suckered. Doctors that have been at County longer will give some of their patients to newer doctors. Looks like Doctor Kovac has given you five of his patients." "So what am I supposed to do?" "Well either you take the patients on or go find Luka and give them back to him."  
  
***  
"Alright asshole, where are you?" Bella thought to herself. She was not going to let anyone here run over her just because she was new. Bella stopped by an examining room to talk to Abby. "Hey Abby, do you know where Dr., um I believe it was, Kovac is?" "I think he is in curtain 3 with a patient," Abby looked at her and grinned a little, "Did he give you some of his patients?" "Yeah, ugh I don't want them, I get off in an hour and I'm behind schedule with my original patients. Well.thanks Abby." Bella walked off searching for this man who thought he could take advantage of her just because she was new. He had another thing coming if he thought he could treat her that way. 


	4. The Encounter

I don't own any of these characters! Enjoy!  
  
*****~Point of view of Dr. Luka Kovac  
  
Luka Kovac had just finished examining his last patient for the day and he still had 2 hours on his shift. He was leaving the examining area when he had a head-on collision with another person and patient charts fell all over the floor. Luka bent down to help pick up the charts and looked straight into the face of the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. He remembered her from that morning when a fire had started across town and all the doctors were in the ambulance bay. "I'm sorry about that, I wasn't watching where I was going," Luka explained, in his deep foreign accent that made most women weak at the knees upon hearing it. He handed the charts back to her. "I'm Luka Kovac," Luka said as he noticed the woman's face turn from an inviting gaze to a calloused stare.  
  
*****~Point of view of Dr. Bella Fairfax  
  
Bella's attitude had quickly changed. The good-looking doctor that she had held the long stare with outside that morning was Dr. Luka Kovac. The Luka Kovac who had given her an extra set of patients just because he had "wanted to." "WHY GOD, DO ALL THE HANDSOME ONES HAVE TO BE JERKS?!?" Bella silently asked herself, but she was not going to back down now. She was never one to back down before she had taken care of business. "Good! I was looking for you anyway," Bella said noticing Luka's face turn into an intrigued stare and his lips curl into an arrogant grin but she quickly corrected his mistaken thought, "You gave me five of your patients and I am here to give them back and to tell you that I don't ever want to see any of your patients put on my work load again without my knowledge! Alrighty?" pause, "Bye then." Bella gave a quick cynical smile and shoved the charts in his hands before she turned and strolled off.  
  
Bella dialed the combination to the lock on her new locker in the doctor's lounge. The name "FAIRFAX" was displayed prominently on the locker, which Bella was very proud of. It was evidence that she had worked hard, she had followed her dream of becoming a doctor, and now that dream had become a reality. Bella pulled her coat out of her locker and put it on and buttoned it. She took her purse out as well and headed for the front door of the hospital waving to some people as she went. Bella paused at the door, not sure if she wanted to step out into the cold night air, she pushed through the door and a gust of frigid air blew through her shoulder length blond hair. Bella started toward the El', shivering and her eyes tearing up because the wind was so strong and cutting.  
  
As she walked she began to think about the actions of her day. Bella remembered leaving her apartment with high hopes for the day. She had gotten to the hospital just in time to help out in an emergency and to see the handsome young man that had caught her eye almost immediately. The man she now knew as "lazy Dr. K," he had tried to treat her unfairly and now she had shoved it down his throat. She laughed at herself as she thought about what she had said to him and the new nickname that she had given to him. Maybe he hadn't quite deserved the telling off she had given him but she had never been walked on her whole life and she wasn't about to let it start.  
  
Bella started down the alley toward the train that was going to take her to the warmth and safety of her apartment. It was really dark and Bella picked up the pace because she was a little apprehensive about walking alone in the dark alley. She was just a few steps from the end of the alley when a strong hand grabbed her arm and whirled her around. 


	5. I'm fine

Hey everyone! Well I haven't written in a while cuz I've been pretty busy with school and everything so I guess this is the fifth chapter. Dang! I can't believe I've already written 5 chapters. Read and review please! I don't own any of these Characters, Enjoy!  
  
****  
  
Luka Kovac looked at the charts that had just been shoved into his hands. He looked at them and recognized his own writing and realized that she had been the doctor he had given most of his patients to. He went to the information desk where Maliek was standing at the computer inputting patient charts and eating his dinner or early breakfast. "Hey Maliek, how is it going?" Luka asked in the tone he always used when he wanted something. "It's fine, what do you want Kovac?" Maliek asked familiar with the tone. "I was wondering about the woman that was just here. She's blond, nice look about her." "Oh you mean Bella? Yeah she's great. She comes from money, the Fairfax's of Chicago you know. She's new here. Why do you care about her?" "Oh, the Fairfax's huh?" Luka asked diverting the question, "Why is she at County of all places? You'd think since she is so rich she would work at some place better then this, a private practice or something. Not a small community hospital where the pay is so low." "Well, I haven't exactly asked her yet but she seems nice enough, not snobby like most rich people. She knows Dr. Carter, I think. Oh, and she seems to be able to take care of herself," Maliek chuckled and nodded at the charts Luka was holding. Luka grinned and rolled his eyes as he went off to see his patients.  
  
****  
  
Bella felt very light headed as she was twirled around. She had always been able to quiet herself when she was afraid of something. She was like a possum when she was scared, she got very still and quiet, and in her own way she would deal with whatever was going on around her. Bella had always been a very small girl and all through most of elementary she was picked on because of this. Once when she was in first grade she had been swinging on the swing set on the playground and a bully had come up and told her to move. Even then Bella was not one to back down from a fight, so she refused. The bully had backed away and allowed Bella to go as high as her little legs could take her and then shoved Bella off the swing. Bella hit the ground hard and a shot of hot pain raged through her tiny arm. She had just sat there, dealing with the pain, not shouting or crying: just cringing in pain.  
  
This situation in the alley was very much like her first grade experience. Bella was silent and stiff with fear. As she whirled around to face her aggressor, she looked for something on the ground she could use to smack him with. "Bella, it's okay it's me!" Bella paused and then slapped John Carter so hard on his cheek that he was left dazed for a few seconds. "What the hell is wrong with you John, scaring me like that? You should be strangled!" Carter's cheek was already starting to swell and he cringed as he felt the puffy state his cheek was now taking on. "Damn Bella, I'm sorry I scared you but you didn't have to hit me. And don't act like you didn't know it was me when you slapped me because I know you did." All of Bella's limbs were just regaining their flexibility and she saw what she had done to Carter. Of course it was intentional on her part, she knew it, and he had deserved it but she still felt sorry for him. "I'm sorry Johnny, you know how I get when I'm scared," just as she was saying this the El pulled out of it's port on it's way to it's next stop. "Ugh! Well there goes my ride home." John grabbed Bella's hand and pulled her toward a coffee shop nearby, "we have a lot of catching up to do anyways Bella, that's why I grabbed you; I wanted to ask if you would have coffee with me." Bella laughed quietly, "Nah, we should do that some other time because I'm tired and I have an early shift tomorrow." "Oh come on Tink, I haven't seen you in a whole year!" Bella finally allowed Carter to pull her into the coffee shop, noting, "Resistance was futile."  
***  
"So Abby and you, huh?" Carter nodded as Bella drank a sip of her coffee. "I think it's a good match, you both seem very grounded. Well from what I can tell anyway." "Yeah, Abby and I have had problems but we worked through them and I really do love her very much. We met in the ER and we clicked, even though she was still recovering from a messy divorce," Carter looked at Bella's stunned look, "but that's a story for another time, what has your life been like this past year?" Bella's eyebrows rose, "nothing exciting like yours, I did finish my residency pretty quick. My dad pretty much disowned me for becoming a doctor, because breaking away from his control isn't "how I was raised". I had a couple of boyfriends but nothing I thought was serious, you know. And there is the last year in a nutshell." Bella smiled. "Oh Bella, you always have a way of always putting everything that you go through aside and make them not sound so important. It's not fair." Carter said taking on a serious stare. "Aww Johnny, but you love me any way; I can tell!" Bella laughed. "Yeah I do, and I'm so glad your back because I missed you so much!"  
  
Bella smiled and for once in her life she felt like she was truly needed somewhere. Both in the ER and with her friends, new and old. 


	6. Can't Sleep

Hey, Chapter 6 yeah! I don't own any characters, except for Bella Fairfax. This isn't as long as the others but I'm having a temporary writing block. Review please! ~Me  
  
****  
Bella was doubled over on the ground as her nanny frantically dialed 911, in an effort to feel as if she were doing something. Bella let out a small grunt as she clutched her side; her clothes were wet with cold sweat. Bella could hear her heart pounding in her ears as another burst of pain ripped through her side like some creature was inside her trying to tear it's way out. This was the same creature that had dug its claws into her at a young age and started tearing through her her whole life. Bella jolted upward in her bed. Her hair was nappy with perspiration against her forehead and her bed linens were wet with sweat. "Ugh, STOP IT, STOP," she yelled at nothing in particular as she shook her head. She got out of bed and walked to the kitchen to take a couple of painkillers to dull the constant ache that she always had in her side.  
Bella grabbed a bottle of water from her refrigerator and as she shut the door a picture taped on it caught her eye. It was a picture of the man she had dated as a resident and herself. The picture had been taken at her 28th birthday party, the night that he had asked her to marry him. Bella had neglected to tell John Carter about this because she hadn't found it fit to tell anyone, not even her parents knew. Bella had turned the man down even though she had loved him tremendously. "It just wasn't right," she said to herself, "he deserved better." She had left the city without even saying good-bye to the man, which she now regretted.  
Bella changed the sheets and made her bed. She stepped into the shower, her shift at County Hospital started in 4 hours but she couldn't persuade herself to go back to sleep. The nightmare she had just had was one of many that she had almost every night. Bella rarely got a full eight hours of sleep because of this and she had learned to cope with her body not getting enough sleep. Bella finished in the shower, put on her robe and wrapped her hair up in a towel. Bella clicked on the television and plopped down in her favorite chair for another night of watching paid programming. 


	7. This ain't going to be a good day!

Hey everyone!! I hope you like chapter 7!! I don't own any of these characters except for Bella Fairfax. And here is a general definition for the people who are like me and they don't really know much about the medical profession. I had to do some research on this story: Tachycardia- Tachycardia is a condition in which your heart beats too quickly - usually more than 80 times per minute. As a result, your body does not get enough oxygen and nutrients to function properly.  
  
*****  
  
A small pain in her neck woke Bella up. She jerked her head forward, "ahh, damn!" She muttered under her breath as she rubbed her aching neck, she had fallen asleep in the chair she had sat down in the previous night. Her neck had been at an angle the whole night. Bella turned her head slowly to look at the clock that sat on the coffee table in front of her. It was 8:oo; she jumped to her feet with a jolt and raced to her room, she was supposed to be at work an hour ago. And as she tripped on some shoes she had left in the floor she remembered saying to herself, "This ain't gonna be a good day!"  
  
*****  
  
"Where the hell is that new doctor?" Doctor Robert Ramano asked in the same irritated tone he always used. "I don't know she was supposed to be in about 45 minutes ago," Jerry replied with a lazy tone, "have you met her yet," he asked turning to Doctor Greg Pratt as Dr. Ramano stalked off. "Nope, but I think.. she better get her ass here fast before Ramano decides to fire her! What's her name anyway?" "Bella Fairfax."  
  
*****  
  
Bella had raced out the door and to the train station just in time to catch the 'El' before it's last transport of the morning. There were no seats left on the train, so she grabbed one of the smooth metal columns that were scattered through out the train. Bella's chest heaved an exasperated sigh as the train detached from its port. "I can't believe I'm late on my second day. What does that make you look like Bella? Did you take your meds? Nope, wait I think I have some in my purse." Bella unzipped her purse and felt around in it for the small jar that held the pills that helped her body stop rejecting its kidneys.  
  
Ever since Bella was a child she had had problems with her kidneys. Her biological father had Kidney disease and that's what killed him at the young age of 42. When Bella turned 10 she started feeling pains in her sides that she couldn't Advil or Tylenol away. Her mother had taken her to the doctor and Bella had been diagnosed. She was told that her kidneys would not last her until she was 25 unless she had a transplant. Bella was 29. Bella had been on the organ recipient list for many years, but to no avail. She was not considered an "emergency case." Bella remembered seeing her mom crying almost every night after she had been diagnosed, which she now understood. The death of Bella's father had dealt a serious blow to her mother emotionally and physically and now her mother would lose Bella to the same disease.  
  
Bella was jolted from her daydream when the train stopped so abruptly many people lost their footing and teetered to regain their equilibrium. "Great, I'm going to be even more late!" An announcement came from speakers that were high above the heads of the passengers, "We are sorry for the inconvenience but we are experiencing difficulties. We will resume once we have assessed the problem. Thank you for your patience." Everyone in the small cabin groaned, seems like things like this only happen on days when everyone is late for something.  
  
"I hope they get everything fixed quickly, I don't do well with enclosed spaces for long periods of time," growled a man in a sweater that read, MICHIGAN in big golden letters. A woman in the corner of the train wedged between two clothing bags and the wall caught Bella's eye. The woman was obviously very distraught and her face looked very sallow and pale. The woman was breathing rather hard and the toes of her sandaled feet kept making large circles on the floor. After staring at the woman for a while Bella glanced out the window, they were in a dark tunnel that seemed to get smaller every time Bella looked out. Bella looked at her watch, it was now 15 minutes after 10. She had pretty much given up all hope of getting to work at all for the morning part of her shift.  
  
*****  
  
John Carter had been on call since 2:oo that morning and he was dead tired. It had been a slow morning but even when the patient count was small, the ER was still taxing on a person. The clock on the wall read 11:30, which marked the lunch break that was his savior on days like these. Carter headed for the on-call room ready for a few minutes of sleep before starting his shift again. He passed the nurse's station where Chuny, Abby, and Maleik were having a coffee break and listening to the newest gossip that was already circulating all the floors of the small community hospital. When Abby saw Carter her face lit up with a bright smile that warmed his heart. "Where have you been stranger," asked Carter as he took Abby by the waist and pulled her into him. "Oh, my shift just started about 10 minutes ago and I haven't gotten a chance to come find you." The two were about to lock lips when they felt that they were being watched. They both turned their heads to see Chuny, Maleik, and Neela Rasgotra (a new resident) watching them. "Do you mind?" Carter asked in a slightly irritated tone. "Ahh please, get a room," Maleik answered with a grin and then turned and strolled off. BEEP BEEP.. It was Abby's beeper. Abby had recently become a surgery resident and the OR was paging her. "I thought you were working as a nurse in the ER today." "I am, but that doesn't mean that Corday can't call me up to the OR anytime there is something interesting to see." Abby gave Carter a quick kiss and disappeared down the hall.  
  
After a couple of minutes of dodging residents John finally found solace in the on-call room, where he laid down for a short nap. He didn't realize how short, because as he began to drift off to sleep his pager went off. He fumbled with the pager until he finally was able to find the button that turned a small light on in his pager so he could see in the dark room. The number was one he didn't recognize and for a second he debated whether to answer the page. Finally he pulled himself up off the bed and picked up the phone that was just out side the on-call room door. After one ring he heard Bella's slightly panicked voice at the other end, "Hey, Johnny?" "Yeah? What's wrong Tink?" "I have a problem! I'm on the El, it was delayed. I'm with this woman she looked kind of sick and then she just fainted, looks like a Tachycardia, 200 heartbeats per minute! I need you to have an ambulance waiting by the train port near the hospital! We'll be there in about 5 minutes, and hurry John I'm going to try to slow her heart beat but if I can't she might go into fibrillation!" 


	8. Friggin' long day!

Hey guys!! Chap. 8. I don't own any of these characters besides Bella Fairfax! PG rating again! Have an awesome day!! ~Me  
  
*****  
  
"OH MY GOD! OH MY GOD!!!!! IS SHE DYING??" The man in the Michigan sweatshirt screamed. The man leaned back and started breathing hard. The woman, who had now turned into Bella's patient, started going into seizure again. Bella looked sharply toward the man, "Now you look! I need your help so calm down and hold her down! You too!" Bella yelled toward another man. The two men took their places near the woman's head holding down her shoulders and her arms. "We need to flip her over so that she is laying on her back," Bella directed. The two men paused trying to figure out how to do it. "Now! She doesn't have much time!" The men flipped the woman over and Bella extended the woman's neck.  
  
The train stopped just as Bella was placing her fingers on the Carotid Sinus on the neck. Bella began massaging it on the right side of the woman's neck with her fore and middle fingers. The woman's seizure slowly began to subside and she felt the woman's body go limp under her fingers. Bella took her other fingers and felt for a pulse, she counted off as the beats became more regular.  
  
The doors on the train slide open as Bella turned the woman's neck and started the same process on the left side of her neck. "Hey, we got a call to meet this train here. We were told there would be a doctor on board, I guess that would be you," the ambulance worker looked at Bella. "Yeah that would be me, I think she's past the worst but we still need to get her to the Emergency Room at County General." The man rolled in the gurney and kneeled down to help the other workers pick the woman up and put her on the gurney. "I want to go with you," Bella announced as the ambulance worker started out of the train, "I work at County." At least she hoped she still did.  
  
*****  
  
Bella emerged from the chilling air into the ER to find John standing at the front door, "How is the patient?" "She's doing better. Her heart rate has slowed and her seizures have stopped. I think she needs to be checked out though, she hasn't regained consciousness yet and I'm kind of worried about her." Bella and John started to walk toward the trauma room together, "Excuse me, excuse me! Would you be Bella Fairfax?" Bella turned around to see a short man who was half bald and had a scruffy beard. Carter gave her a there's-gonna-be-trouble look and said, "I'll make sure the patient gets what she needs," as Carter walked off he gave her one last look over his shoulder before he pushed through the trauma room doors.  
  
"Umm, yes I am," Bella replied. "Do you know that you should have been here 5 hours ago?" "Yes sir, but I." "You know what? You know what? I don't even really care, because you weren't here on time you are going to take on two extra shifts." "Two?" Bella asked with a hint of disbelief in her voice. "Hell yeah, Dr. Lewis is sick and Dr. Kovac is going to be late." "Alright." "By the way, if you're late again your going' to get your ass fired!" Bella turned toward the trauma room and rolled her eyes, it was going to be a fucking long day! 


End file.
